The Priestess of Time
by Celcius
Summary: Thalia, the priestess in the Temple of Time, has spent her whole life there, waiting to help the Hero of Time fulfil his destiny. Now she must live his destiny for him. Filler chapter, but it has some cool info on Thalia. Read the AN!
1. Priestess Thalia

Thalia, the priestess in the Temple of Time, has spent her whole life there, waiting to help the Hero of Time fulfil his destiny. But all the years there have made her ironic and rude. Finally the Hero comes, and guess what happens. There is a secondary Hero, in case of emergency.

By the way, this first chapter begins about when Link is just finishing up with Jabu Jabu. She first interacts with Link when Ganondorf is chasing after Zelda.

"Speaking"

'Thinking'

(((((Just outside the Temple of Time)))))

"Oh, milady priest. I did not see you there! Is the Temple open for prayer now?"

"It is indeed."

"Thank you."

"It is alright. I'm just working in the Garden of Time, keeping it clean."

"Ohoho, Garden of Time. You have quite a sense of humour, milady."

"Thank you, ma'am."

The woman walked inside. As soon as she was gone, Thalia frowned.

"Hmph. Garden of Time my ass. They have an everything of Time. Hotel of Time, Bar of Time, Prostitute of Time. Probably have a Souvenir Shop of Time somewhere."

Thalia sighed. Her grandmother had been the last Priestess of Time. When she died, Thalia took over. She was only 6. And she had been in this temple ever since. That was 11 years ago, and her 17th birthday was coming up soon. Her father always sent her a little gift through a friend of his. Thalia, because of her high status and her family's low status, was not allowed to talk to her family. Any presents from them was forbidden. Any contact, other than that of priestess to follower, was prohibited.

Two young people, a man and a woman, exited the temple. Thalia put on a quick smile. 'Well, aren't they just bottles of pure fucking sunshine;' Thalia thought sarcastically as she kept the fake smile plastered to her face. When the people were gone, she frowned again. She pulled up the last Weed of Time in the Garden of Time, and walked the Path of Time up to the Entranceway of Time of the Temple of Time.

"Yeesh, I've got time on the brain."

Thalia walked in the Temple of Time, looking indifferently at all of the people praying towards the front of the church. Up at the front was the altar, used to hold the spiritual stones, with the names of the three goddesses engraved into it. There was also the door of time, with the symbol of the Goddess of Time.

'I wonder what's behind that door' Thalia pondered as she walked to her room in the back of the temple.

The temple itself was rather simple. High walls made of the strongest stone rose towering over the people, leading into stained glass windows of only the lightest colours. There was no door for the entrance, but there was the Door of Time and the altar. No one knew what was behind the Door; it could have been greater than the palace for all anyone knew. Her door, when facing the altar, was on the left side of the building.

In her room, Thalia looked at the picture of a woman. She looked like an older Thalia, with her blonde hair so light it looked white, a soft and round face, and bright grey eyes. She was also wearing a similar lavender dress, the colour of the Goddess of Time. This was Thalia's predecessor, her great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandmother. She was Thalia, the First Priestess of Time, the only one to ever see behind the Door of Time, and Thalia's namesake.

"Hmph. She's also the only one to get her title capitalized." 'And the one that ruined my life.'

"She was the great Priestess of Time. I'm only _a _priestess of time."

Thalia sighed for probably the 50th time that day. She took her basket of weeds and tossed them into the fire that warmed the temple. It was a warmer winter, and it hadn't snowed yet, but it was still cold out.

Thalia glanced at the clock on the wall. 'It's almost time to send everyone home.' Thalia thought as it started to rain.

(((((That Night)))))

Thalia had tried to sleep, but the storm was keeping her awake. She sat up reading her favourite book, about a Prince and the simple farm girl that he chose to love. Thalia may have been bitter, but she was also a hopeless romantic.

Closing her book she tried to sleep again. It was about midnight. Suddenly she heard a large noise. It sounded like and explosion right outside of the temple.

"Gah! No one better be messing with my temple, I've wasted my life keeping it standing."

Thalia dressed herself in her lavender dress and tied her hair back. For the final touch, she put on her necklace that had the triforce symbol on it. Whenever she was in public, she must always look like the priestess that she is. She walked outside. The city seemed awfully bright.

"Was there a festival that I missed, or something?" Thalia went around the corner into the town square. And she gasped, eyes wide, as she saw what was going on.

The whole town was ablaze! Moblins and Stalfos ransacked the buildings, killing everyone in their way. Bodies littered the streets, blood on the walls, and everywhere there rose one frightened cry: Ganondorf! Ganondorf is attacking the palace!

And for the first time in her long, boring life, Thalia thought 'Maybe I won't have to wait for the Hero after all.'

The signals were all correct. The storm, the insurrection, the appearance of evil. Now all that was left was for the hero to show. Suddenly, she heard a horse neigh and some shouting. A white horse flew by. Thalia could tell that the rider of the horse was Impa, the princess's nursemaid and she presumed (and prayed) that the princess was with her. As the princess disappeared over the bridge, Thalia felt another presence. An evil one. Just as she felt it, a man on a black horse went flying by. He stopped before the bridge, growling because he had lost the princess. He then led his horse out.

Thalia was suddenly broken from the spell that held her in that spot and she walked forward to see if she could find any survivors. She heard a scream from outside the gates, but ignored it. Poor fool was probably already dead.

She stood in the middle of the square, surveying the damage. After a few moments, she heard boots coming toward her. She looked up, half expecting to see the Hero. 'It's just a little boy... in a green skirt.' She thought as he walked past her.

"Listen!"

Thalia gasped as a fairy flew in front of the boy. It continued to talk.

"We should go visit the Great Fairy near the castle. Then we can go to the Temple of Time, and ask the priest there what to do about the-"

"I am the priestess. Of the Temple of Time."

Thalia didn't know what compelled her to speak, but she did. The boy and the fairy turned toward her. Thalia noticed the boy held an ocarina that looked like the Ocarina of Time. But it couldn't be. The fairy spoke.

"I'm Navi and this is Link. The princess sent us. We have the spiritual stones and we're supposed to go to the temple or something..."

Navi kept talking as Thalia only half listened. The Stones, the Ocarina of Time, the fairy with the man in green: it was the hero. A little boy was the hero. Thalia held back tears of bitterness. 10 years, and this little brat is who she was waiting for. Thalia glared at Link, before turning on her heel and trudging heavily away.

All her life had been wasted on this one, failing moment. She was devastated, destroyed, and lost. Her life was done.

Navi and Link looked at each other in question.

"Come on Link; let's go see the Great Fairy."

(((((Temple of Time)))))

Link walked into the temple silently. He looked to the front of the temple, seeing the priestess there. She was sitting on the steps near the altar, her knees pulled to her chest, her hands around her knees, and her head buried. She was crying. He walked up to the girl and Navi spoke.

"Hey. What's wrong?"

The girl looked up at them, almost pure hatred in her eyes.

"So, you're the hero, huh? Just leave me alone. Go save the world, or whatever you're supposed to do." 'My dreams were shot down by a kid. Man, have I lost my self-respect."

Navi went to speak again, but Thalia interrupted her.

"Spiritual Stones go there." She said, pointing towards the altar. "Good luck."

Link walked toward the altar, standing in front of it. He pulled out an ocarina and started playing. Thalia, still huddled in the curled position at the moment, slowly looked up. 'It's the Song of Time.'

There was a grinding noise behind her. Thalia stood as she turned around. The door of time was opening.

(((((TBC)))))

Well? Good, bad? I think it seemed to skip or move too fast in some parts, so if I ever finish the story, I might go back and redo some of it. But hey, practice makes perfect. The more I re-write it, the better it will get. Constructive criticism will be helpful.

Next chapter: Ganondorf shows up, and the Hero is out of commission. What will Thalia do?


	2. The New Hero

Wow, people seem to like this story, so of course I will continue it! The rest of the chapters will probably be a bit shorter than that last one. In fact, the last one _was_ going to be longer, but I saw a potential cliff-hanger and I took it!

And remember, I am planning on going back to the first chapter and doing some power-proofreading! It will be better!

And now for the second chapter of The Priestess of Time!

(((((Temple of Time)))))

"_Spiritual Stones go there." She said, pointing towards the altar. "Good luck."_

_Link walked toward the altar, standing in front of it. He pulled out an ocarina and started playing. Thalia, still huddled in the curled position at the moment, slowly looked up. 'It's the Song of Time.'_

_There was a grinding noise behind her. Thalia stood as she turned around. The door of time was opening._

Thalia stood, mouth gaping. She could have sworn her heart stopped. This brat was the hero. The Door of Time was opening. She could have her name in capital letters and her own portrait in the temple!

Thalia smiled as she slowly followed the small boy. 'Link was his name?' She closed her eyes and slowly stepped past the doorway. And stood there. She slowly opened one eye. She went past the Door of Time and nothing happened. Wasn't something magical supposed to happen? She blinked as her smile waned away. Well, this was crap. Nothing happened.

Thalia looked up to see where the boy had gone. He was standing in front of something. She briskly walked forward and looked at what he was standing near. Once again she felt a sense of awe overcome her. It was the Master Sword. If she wanted to see anything this was it. It wasn't the Sword of Time, it was: _The Master Sword_! It was the first thing in her life that didn't end in "of Time". It was great.

As the boy walked toward the sword, Thalia remembered her place. She smoothed down her dress and stood up straight.

"Link." He turned toward her. "You are the proclaimed Hero of Time, whether or not you knew this before. It is your job to save Hyrule from the evil that threatens it. You will protect it, or die trying." 'Hopefully the former' Thalia added in her mind. "This sword, the Master Sword, is the bane of the existence of evil. Take it Hero, and realize your destiny." She bowed to him as she slowly backed towards the door.

'Finally, my life has meaning!' Thalia threw herself a party in her head as the boy walked forward. His hands started for the handle of the sword.

Suddenly, the bright light in her face left. She felt as if she was falling, not into bliss but into fear. Her heart started to beat erratically. Sweat formed on her brow, and she had trouble breathing. Her mouth was dry and she couldn't move or speak. She had felt this before, when she went to the palace. It was the feeling of pure evil. She had felt it only once before, when she met the King's most trusted advisor, Ganondorf.

Sure enough, just as this thought got through to her, he sidled up next to her. Her eyes looked to her right, meeting his. She looked away as soon as their eyes met. He walked past her, towards the young boy.

Thalia tried to speak, tried to move, tried to make any noise to break her from this spell of fear. Ganondorf walked up behind the boy, silent as a whisper. As the shadow of the Desert King fell over the boy, he turned and gasped. Ganondorf went to hit the boy over the head.

Thalia never found her voice, but she did find her legs. She quickly ran forward and grabbed the boy, dragging him away from Ganondorf just as the man's hand came down, smashing the stone in front of him. He came towards Thalia at an incredibly fast pace. She pushed the boy one way, going the other and praying that Ganondorf would follow her.

He didn't.

Running into the wall, he quickly pushed off towards Link. Thalia yelled something. It was either a warning for Link, or something aimed for Ganondorf that I am not at liberty to repeat. He grabbed the boy, who screamed (Thalia was caught off guard for a moment at the high pitch of his voice). Ganondorf removed his sword from his scabbard, putting the edge to Link's neck. Thalia looked around the room for something, _anything_, that could help her. Her eyes fell on something that caused an evil glint to enter her eye.

The Master Sword.

Completely forgetting her training having to do with 'only the Hero may touch the Sword', she sprung for it. Just as Ganondorf went to swing his sword and decapitate the poor boy, Thalia pulled the sword from the pedestal.

Oh, well. I guess she wasn't paying attention during _all_ of her lessons.

(((((4 years later)))))

**Arise, Priestess.**

Thalia slowly opened her eyes. She then shut them as a bright light assaulted them. She groaned as she sat up, mumbling profanities.

"Who turned on the sun?"

Thalia felt groggy and couldn't really feel her limbs. 'It's like I've been asleep for five years.'

**Only four, actually.**

Thalia gasped as the booming voice entered her mind, reminding her of a god. She blinked rapidly, looking around her frantically for the source of the voice. A man, with white hair and red robes appeared a few feet in front of her. He was certainly a sight to behold, and if this was the man who spoke, he looked every part the god, much like he sounded.

"Who are you?"

**I am Rauru, the Sage of Light. My body has long since vanished, but my soul remains safely here, in the Sacred Realm. In the past four years, since you took the master** **sword from the Pedestal of Time..."** 'Yeesh, more time stuff.' **"Ganondorf has taken control of Hyrule, using the Triforce of Power, which he stole from this holy ground when you removed the sword.**

"So, what do you mean four years?"

**Your soul has slept for four years, enough for you to mature and take up the Master Sword, so to rid this word of evil. It is your job to save Hyrule from the evil that threatens it. You will protect it, or die trying. This sword, the Master Sword, is the bane of the existence of evil. Take it, and realize your destiny.**

(Thump) Thalia fainted.

(((((TBC)))))

I couldn't help but make Rauru's speech similar to Thalia's (when she was speaking to Link).

By the way, any bold is a sage talking (not the person, the sage).

Next chapter: Thalia meets Sheik and finds out why she is hero. She also finds out what happened to Link, the original hero, before heading to the Forest Temple.


	3. The Changing World

New chapter! Thank you all for the reviews. I think that this may be one of my best stories. It could be because I really had most of the story in mind before I started, but I think it is turning out rather well.

Now, on to chapter 3!

(((((Sacred Realm)))))

"_So, what do you mean four years?"_

_Your soul has slept for four years, enough for you to mature and take up the Master Sword, so to rid this word of evil. It is your job to save Hyrule from the evil that threatens it. You will protect it, or die trying. This sword, the Master Sword, is the bane of the existence of evil. Take it, and realize your destiny._

_(Thump) Thalia fainted._

Rauru sighed. She wasn't the Hero of Time, but he was out of commission. Especially now, he had no way of becoming the Hero. After that incident between him and Ganondorf...

Rauru sighed again. He held his hand toward the star-struck priestess, and she disappeared in a cloud of yellow light.

(((((Temple of Time: Master Sword room)))))

Thalia groaned slightly as something poked her in the side. She turned over to fall back asleep. It poked her again. Thalia's hand went to her back, groping for the offensive poker. She found it, grabbed it, and tossed it away. Thalia only realized that she had tossed a person when it yelled as it flew into the near wall.

She gasped, sitting up. It was indeed a person. Thalia rose and ran toward him.

"Oh my God, I am _so_ sorry. I didn't know that it was a person! Are you hurt?"

Thalia studied the person. It was a rather girly-looking guy. And at the moment he was looking at her like she was a monster. True, Thalia was stronger than she looked, but her true strength scared many people.

When she first became priestess, some bullies who were of a different religion came in and roughed up the place quite a bit. The temple was closed for a month. For a while after that, she studied fighting skills, hoping to learn to defend herself. Unluckily for those boys, she was a fast learner. The next time that they came back she beat them up quite badly.

(((((14 years ago)))))

"Oh god, please don't break my arm!"

"Say it!"

"Please, no!"

"SAY IT!"

"You win! You win! Please just let me go!"

"And?"

"And my mother was a deku scrub!"

"... Good. Now get out of my temple."

(((((Back in the present)))))

Yeah, she wasn't bullied anymore.

"Are you alright?"

"I am fine."

"Are you sure? Here let me help-"

She reached toward him.

"STAY AWAY FROM ME... please, just, back away."

Thalia backed away from the man as he stood up, using the wall to steady himself. He gasped a couple of times, trying to get the air back into his lungs. Then he stood up straight, dusted himself off, and turned toward her.

"Um, hi. Sorry about that. My name is-"

"Thalia. I know of you."

"Okay. It's nice to meet you..."

"Sheik."

"Sheik, then."

She held out her hand in greeting. He looked at it incredulously. She quickly brought it back to her side, remembering the last time that he had contact with her hand.

They stood in silence for a couple of seconds. Just as Thalia was about to comment that it was too quiet and she was leaving, Sheik spoke.

"Follow me, please, and I will fill you in on what has happened in the past years."

Thalia noticed the Master Sword lying near her on the ground. She nodded and followed him silently.

(((((Outside of the Temple)))))

Thalia gasped as she exited the temple. The ground, the garden that she had worked so hard on, for all of those years, was devastated. Someone had trampled the flowers, the trees were all upturned, and weeds were growing everywhere. Now Thalia was mad.

Before she could cut herself and swear a blood-oath to the goddesses, Sheik grabbed her arm, pulling her to him and covering her mouth with his hand.

"You must be quieter. Minions of the Dark Lord are everywhere."

Thalia was quiet. As they began to walk, he quickly related the story of the past four years to Thalia.

She learned that when she grabbed the Master Sword, the link between the Sacred Realm and their world was opened. The bad news was that Ganondorf has managed to get the Triforce of Power. The good news was (since Thalia had caught him by surprise) that was the extent of what he had stolen. But he had gained power, and taken over Hyrule. The only way to defeat him was to awaken all of the sages, by going to the 5 temples of Hyrule, and breaking the seals on the sages.

It was now Thalia's job to do so. They had almost reached the town centre when the question was asked.

"What happened to the real Hero? Link was his name?"

Sheik was silent. Should her tell her? Or just say he didn't know. He had heard that Thalia was a bit bitchy, but she could also be very motherly. If he told her what had happened to Link, she might blame herself-

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?"

It looks like she would find out sooner than he had expected.

"Lord Gannon will love to hear about you two. He can kill you faster now that you've come out of hiding"

Both of them looked up to see a figure sitting on one of the roofs of the houses in town. He was wearing a solid black tunic with a grey undershirt and pants. His boots were also black. His hair, once blonde, had been dyed. It was now a sort of a half blonde, half black mix. His skin was pale and his eyes a deathly blue-grey.

Thalia gasped as she recognized him.

(((((TBC)))))

Well, do you know who it is?

I think that it's kind of obvious, but I don't know. If you don't know who it is, you will find out in the next chapter.

Next chapter: The identity of the mysterious man and the Forest Temple (long chapter).


	4. The Forest Temple

It is my burden to always write one chapter during final exams. Time to write more. Yeah... Anyway, it's been a bit since I've updated, so it is time to write anyway… Get read for (Drum roll)

IMPORTANT MESSAGE

Wait. (Drum roll stops) Before I start, I lately came up with a new story idea, kind of from looking at the new Legend of Zelda game previews. It still has the priestess, but the major difference is that Link and Thalia (if I keep the name) would be working together. Also it would be a little more humour than adventure.

I would like to know if I should:

1. Keep this story.

2. Create the new story.

Or 3. Write the new one but also keep the old one.

It could also be a sequel (variation of #3), and I am actually working for that scenario. Your help would be appreciated. Oh, and if you didn't know about the new game, go to GameSpot. Good site.

IMPORTANT MESSAGE OVER

(Drum roll again) Chapter four!

(((((Outside of the Temple)))))

"_Lord Gannon will love to hear about you two. He can kill you faster now that you've come out of hiding"_

_Both of them looked up to see a figure sitting on one of the roofs of the houses in town. He was wearing a solid black tunic with a grey undershirt and pants. His boots were also black. His hair, once blonde, had been dyed. It was now a sort of a half blonde, half black mix. His skin was pale and his eyes a deathly blue-grey._

_Thalia gasped as she recognized him._

"Oh! Recognize me? Yeah, it's me, the person who was supposed to be the Hero. Not you!"

"Well soooorry... sorry... I forgot your name."

"Oh, my God, can you really be that stupid? It's Link!"

"Oh, yeah. Well, Link, I'm very sorry for this inconvenience, and if you would like, I would gladly give you the sword, and all the fame and glory that comes with it. Okay?"

Link looked at her, surprise clear across his face. Sheik looked quickly at her and whispered angrily.

"What are you doing, you idiot? He works for Gannon now!"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" She unsheathed the sword and… "I'm giving it to HIM!"

With the last word out of her mouth, she chucked the sword straight at Link. He gasped, barely having time to react, and rolled off the roof to avoid it, landing on his feet. Thalia ran past him, using boxes and windowsills to vault up to the roof. She landed, dug her foot into the roof and pulled the sword out. She swung it over her shoulder and dove off the roof, flipping in mid-air to land on her feet next to Link. She heaved the sword back over and held it to his throat.

She flashed him a cocky smile. Link looked at her in astonishment. Thalia sighed and heaved the sword over her shoulder again.

"Please, like you weren't expecting that. It was... is my lifelong job to protect the Temple of Time. It's only the most important temple in all of Hyrule. I spent most of my first year as priestess learning how to fight so I could defend this temple."

Link's mouth dropped open.

"What, did you think all I did was plant flowers to make the temple look pretty?"

Link got up and glared at her. He opened his mouth to say something, and then closed it before tossing something on the ground and disappearing in a flash of light.

Thalia rubbed her eyes to see again. She looked over at Sheik. Although she couldn't see his face, she knew his mouth was hanging open. She threw him a smug smile as well, before walking toward the town.

(((((Hyrule Castle Town)))))

When Sheik finally snapped out of it and walked into the town he found that Thalia was quite the little devil when she wanted to be (which was most of the time). She was teasing the re-deads by standing behind one and getting the attention of the others. When the others surrounded it to kill it, she chose another victim, leading the poor creatures on a wild goose chase.

Sheik shook his head as he realized that he had just felt sympathy for Gannon's minions.

Sheik walked to the edge of the town and whistled. He got the attention of the re-deads, but also the attention of the much faster Thalia. She jumped on one of the canopies that was still holding up, ran towards Sheik and jumped down next to him. They exited the town together.

(((((Hyrule Field)))))

"Wow. The field is so much more peaceful than the town."

"But the ghosts of the dead still wander, as do Ganondorf's minions."

Sheik started to walk away.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"To the next temple. Did Rauru not tell you all this?"

"I think I fainted before he could."

Sheik sighed. "To defeat Gannon, we must awaken all of the sages. Rauru is one, and we have five left. To awaken them we must go to their temples and find them. I'm not quite sure how, so I guess we will just find out when we get there."

Thalia smiled. Sheik raised his visible eyebrow at her.

"You know, Sheik, you're not such a bad guy after all. I thought you were all stuck-up and perfectionistic, but you do some things without planning. Good for you."

"You do realize that 'perfectionistic' isn't a word, right?"

"Don't make me take back my compliment. And it should be. It's a good word."

Thalia wasn't sure, as he was always wearing a mask, but she could have sworn that Sheik smiled as he turned to walk away.

(((((Kokiri Forest)))))

"I hate this place already."

Sheik made a small, annoying laugh.

"Quiet you smarmy bastard. Plants, allergies, overgrown vegetation, mud, and did I mention the foliage? I despise this forest. Are we going to go someplace dry next?"

"Yes, actually."

Thalia smiled brightly. She and Sheik had finally reached the forest, only to find it overgrown from years of no one caring for it. It seemed as if all of the fairy children had disappeared.

"Look, it's the village!"

Sheik walked forward and peered over Thalia's shoulder. She was right. Through the next few vines one could clearly see the small Kokiri village. Thalia smiled back at Sheik before going to cut through the next set of vines. They slowly climbed their way down the steep hill.

The Kokiri village looked abandoned. There were absolutely no children around. And it was very, very q u i e t . . .

"HOLY SHIT!"

Thalia screeched out some more profanities as the ground shifted under her feet and a deku baba sprouted up under her. She fell off, landing on something hard. She turned her head. 'It's a kid?' The deku baba let out a horrifying shriek before lowering itself to attack. Thalia grabbed the kid and rolled out of the way, just barely in time. She looked up to see it coming down for a second attack. Suddenly it stood up straight, and was cut in half. Thalia sighed, seeing Sheik standing over the dead plant, knife in hand. Thalia turned her attention to the boy.

"Hey, are you alright?"

The boy looked up at her.

"Are you a Hylian?"

"Yes, I am. My name is Thalia. What's yours?"

"Mido."

"Well, Mido, would you mind telling us what is going on here?"

"I'm not quite sure. He showed up, and we thought that he looked different. Suddenly he said that he was going to pay us back for all the pain we caused him and he summoned all of those monsters."

"Him? Do you mean Link?"

"Yeah. D'you know him?"

"Sort of."

"We managed to save his fairy, Navi. She was in a bottle and when he accidentally dropped it, it shattered."

Thalia looked at Sheik. He nodded.

"Do you think we could see her? She might be able to help us."

Mido nodded. He got up and started to walk toward one of the tree houses. This one was a very tall tree that required a ladder to reach the door.

"This is Link's old house."

Mido started to climb, Thalia and Sheik following. They reached the top and went inside. It was very dark, as almost no light got into the forest anymore. But there was one spot on the table that was glowing. A fairy. And from the looks of it, she was crying.

"Link. Why?"

"Navi."

Navi gasped and flew into the air. She looked at Thalia.

"You look familiar. You're that priestess, aren't you? Could you please help me find Link? I'm worried about him..."

"I don't think you need to worry about him little one. He seemed healthy enough to me when he was planning on killing me. He works for Ganondorf now, you do know that right?"

Navi floated down slowly and started crying again. She nodded. Thalia walked over to the table that she was on. Thalia slowly and carefully picked her up, holding the fairy close to her face.

"If you help us, you may be seeing Link quite a bit more. He's kind of hunting us now. That way, you can be sure that he is okay, and you can help us. And in return, Sheik and I will do our best to help get Link back to his old self."

Navi looked up at her and nodded. She once again flew into the air and started for the door. Thalia, Sheik and Mido followed.

Once outside, Mido took the lead.

"The Forest Temple is this way."

(((((Outside of the Forest Temple)))))

(Real quick A/N: Since I don't want to play out the whole dungeon in my fic, I'm going to go with the short Zelda no Densetsu manga version)

Thalia brushed past the last of the last of the overgrowth to come into a clearing. Mido was standing in front of some old and broken down steps.

"This is the entrance to the temple."

Thalia looked up in amazement. The temple looked almost all natural! Half of the entrance was trees, and the only thing that held the crumbling stairs together were the vines covering them.

"Beautiful."

Thalia was cut off from her reverie as a loud howl reverberated through the trees. Suddenly two Wolfos leapt from the trees. Mido grabbed a stick, yelling to get out as he swung at the beasts. Thalia, seeing that he was in trouble, slashed at the closest monster, killing it. The other one howled once, twice as Sheik cut it down.

"Beautiful, but dangerous. Let's keep moving."

Thalia nodded, taking Mido's hand as they continued. But someone was watching them. Link stood on a tree branch and watched them walk nto the temple. He turned to Phantom Gannon.

"Kill them."

(((((Forest Temple)))))

They entered the main hallway. Pictures of Ganondorf lined the walls. At the end of the hall they entered into the first room. In it, there were more pictures, all identical, and all of Ganondorf. Suddenly, Sheik stopped.

"What's wrong?"

"There's something here. But, I'm not quite sure what..."

"DIE!"

Thalia, holding Mido, pushed Sheik to the wall and fell backwards, barely avoiding the huge hand that came between them. Looking up, they realized that the hand belonged to Gannon. 'No, not Gannon.' Thalia didn't have time to continue that thought as he swung again.

"Sheik! Take him!"

Thalia shoved Mido in Sheik's direction and unsheathed the Master Sword. She faced her foe.

"You're not Ganondorf. Who are you?"

A voice rang in Thalia's head. 'Phantom Gannon.' Thalia looked for the source of the voice. Sheik and Mido also looked confused. She saw the fear come to their eyes just in time, for Phantom had taken out his sword. He swung, missing her. She swung. Her sword went right through him.

"Sheik, why is it not working!"

Thalia started to back away. Mido tried to break from Sheik's grasp to help her, but Sheik held firmly to the boy. Mido looked for something to throw at the creature. His eyes widened as they landed on something tossed into the corner. He broke from Sheik and ran for it.

"The Fairy Bow!"

Sheik looked over his shoulder. Grabbing the bow and quiver, he turned toward the heroine.

"Thalia!"

He tossed it as hard as he could. Both bow and quiver hit Phantom squarely in the back of the head before bouncing up in the air. Thalia used the diversion to sneak around the ghost and grab the bow and arrows. Phantom Gannon used her diversion to sneak back into the safety of a painting.

"Where is he?"

"Behind you!"

Thalia quickly turned, setting an arrow and firing as soon as he emerged, hitting him directly between the eyes. Gannon screamed in pain as he fell to the ground. Thalia quickly pulled the Master Sword out, plunging it into him. His body disintegrated and a green light appeared around Sheik, Mido and Thalia. The light turned into a room. The Sacred Realm. And standing on the symbol of the forest, was the Sage of the Forest.

The girl looked up at Thalia.

"Hello, Priestess. I am Saria, Sage of the Forest. Thank you for freeing me from the imprisonment of Phantom Gannon, and saving my home."

"No problem."

"I regret that I will not be able to return to the forest, as I must guard the temple. But when Mido awakens, please tell him, and the others, that I will always watch them.

Thalia raised an eyebrow and looked at Mido. He was out cold. She looked at Sheik.

"He fainted during the battle."

Thalia made a small sound of understanding and turned back to Saria.

"Hey, Saria. When you called me 'priestess', was that with or without a capital P?"

"With."

Saria smiled, and the green light around them once again gave way to the temple.

"What-? What happened?"

"I beat the monster. And talked to Saria. She has some things to finish up here, but she said that she'll come back regularly to make sure that you and the rest of the Kokiri are still safe."

Mido smiled.

(((((Kokiri Village)))))

"Thanks again you guys!"

"No problem. We'll be sure to come back and visit!"

Thalia waved as they walked toward the entrance of the village.

"You know, I kind of like this place now that Ganondorf's influence is gone. Just one sec, I'm gonna grab some water from the pond to drink."

Sheik nodded. Thalia walked over to the pond and uncorked a bottle. She filled it and started to leave, but her reflection caught her eye. She knew she would be different after four years, but not _this_ different. Her hair, one at about her mid-back was now down to her hips. Her purple priestess dress had been altered as well. It was now darker, and made of a more durable fabric. Her sandals had also been replaced for sturdier and more comfortable leather. She looked at herself from the side. 'Are my boobs really that small?' Thalia mused. She then shrugged and headed back toward Sheik. 'I take what I can get.'

"Ready?"

"Yep. Oh, and Sheik. Thanks for tossing the bow at Gannon. He almost had me cornered."

"Actually, I was aiming for you."

"Sheik?"

"Yes, Thalia?"

"Don't throw things ever again."

"Yes, Thalia."

(((((TBC)))))

Whoo, nine pages! Remember my IMPORTANT MESSAGE, and please review.


	5. Malon the Farm Girl

Well, since my brain has been working away, I have figured out what to do with my second story idea. It will be a sequel, and it will have Link and Thalia working together. That is all I know so far, and it may change a little because of the new game that is coming out in Q4 2005 (that's October, November, and December of 2005 for people who don't follow games as much as I do).

(((((Kokiri Village)))))

_Sheik nodded. Thalia walked over to the pond and uncorked a bottle. She filled it and started to leave, but her reflection caught her eye. She knew she would be different after four years, but not this different. Her hair, one at about her mid-back was now down to her hips. Her purple priestess dress had been altered as well. It was now darker, and made of a more durable fabric. Her sandals had also been replaced for sturdier and more comfortable leather. She looked at herself from the side. 'Are my boobs really that small?' Thalia mused. She then shrugged and headed back toward Sheik. 'I take what I can get.'_

"_Ready?"_

"_Yep. Oh, and Sheik. Thanks for tossing the bow at Gannon. He almost had me cornered."_

"_Actually, I was aiming for you."_

"_Sheik?"_

"_Yes, Thalia?"_

"_Don't throw things ever again."_

"_Yes, Thalia."_

(((((Hyrule Field)))))

"Next, we need to go to Kakariko Village, and up to Death Mountain."

"All the way back there! I don't want to walk anymore, Sheik."

"Thalia..."

Sheik turned and his face fell into an irritated expression. She was looking up at him, eyes large and watery, mouth small and pouting away. She looked absolutely pathetic.

"Fine."

"Yay!"

"We'll go to the ranch. It's not far from here. We can rent out a horse or two."

"Yay!"

This time, Thalia pulled Sheik into a hug, squeezing him hard before running off towards the ranch. Sheik rubbed his sore arm as he followed her.

(((((Lon-Lon Ranch)))))

"HORSIES!"

Sheik looked on in horror as the girl tried to chase the horses around. He shook his head and looked around for someone to help them. Sheik reached out with a hand and grabbed Thalia as she came around.

"There doesn't seem to be anyone here."

"That's odd-"

"Hey! What do ya'll want?"

Thalia and Sheik watched as a tall, slightly rounded man with thin black hair and a thick moustache walked toward them. Sheik walked towards the man.

"We would like to rent horses for a time, as we are going to be travelling."

"We don't rent out horses. Only sell."

"Alright then. We would like to purchase horses."

Thalia went back to the corral to look at the horses. 'Hmm. What did he mean we? It looks like he's the only one here.' Just as Thalia thought this, she heard a slight humming. Thalia turned as she noticed a girl in the corral, feeding one of the horses. She had bright red hair, and was wearing a simple dress and apron.

"Hi. I'm Thalia."

The girl looked up. Thalia smiled brightly at the girl.

"They call me Malon."

Malon smiled as well. Before quickly turning back to her work. Thalia frowned then. Malon may have smiled, but she looked thin and tired. Thalia could see a long, bright red mark going down her arm as well. 'This girl hasn't been well taken care of.'

Thalia felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to come face-to-mask with Sheik.

"We struck a deal. Pick a horse."

Thalia nodded. She walked toward the now open gate to the corral and looked around. Her eyes wandered over all of the simple horses.

"Make sure you hurry."

"But I want a real special one."

Thalia said childishly and smiled brightly.

"You mean special like you?"

"I HEARD THAT!"

Sheik smirked. He watched as she chased around the horses some more. They all ran away from her, almost making Sheik laugh. A horse sauntered up to him and nuzzled his arm. Sheik rubbed its nose and turned to the ranch owner.

"I'll take this one... um, I never got your name."

"It's Master Ingo."

"I WANT THIS'UN!"

A shriek rang out from the middle of the arena. For once, Thalia found a horse that didn't run. She was hugging its neck and squealing.

It was a special horse, too. First, it wasn't afraid of her, as most other living beings were. Second, instead of the plain brown colour of the rest of the horses, it was a light chestnut colour, with a white mane and tail. It also had white stripe on going down its face.

Thalia jumped on its back and rode it over toward Sheik and Ingo.

"This one."

Thalia smiled.

"It's not for sale."

Thalia frowned.

"Why not?"

"This horse is being held especially for Gannon. It's a talented horse, and he wants her for his collection."

Sheik and Thalia looked at each other. SO this guy was working for Ganondorf. Thalia looked over her shoulder. 'No wonder that girl looks so lost.'

It was at that moment that the most random "blessing-in-disguise" happened. A crack of thunder sounded overhead and rain began to pour. Ingo screeched something about his expensive clothes before running inside. Sheik followed him. Thalia dismounted the horse and started to follow Sheik, but stopped and looked back at Malon.

Malon was struggling. Between the stubborn horses and the newly forming mud, she was having a hell of a time trying to get the horses back into the barn. Just as she felt her foot slipping, she felt a strong hand on hers. Malon looked over her shoulders to see Thalia.

"You don't have to help me."

"Oh, but I do. It's kind of my job."

Malon's eyes widened in surprise before she nodded, and went to grab another horse. Slowly but surely, the two girls got all of the horses into the barn. When they were done, Thalia took Malon's hand.

"What are you doing?"

"_We_ are going to go into the house to dry off."

"I'm not allowed in the house."

Thalia looked at Malon with such a piercing stare that Malon almost felt obliged to follow her new friend. They quickly got through the rain and into the house. Malon came face to face with a rather peeved Ingo.

"What are you doing inside, girl? Get back to the barn!"

"I, uh... I-"

"My companion and I have decided to hire her for the night."

Thalia came up behind Malon defensively. Ingo backed down, but just barely.

"For the night?"

"We aren't going to leave in this storm. We will pay you 250 rupees for room, board, and servant for a night here."

Thalia could have sworn she saw rupee symbols form in Ingo's eyes. Suddenly he was acting a lot nicer towards them. Thalia smiled at Sheik. He shook his head, but did not contradict her decisions.

(((((Later that Night)))))

Thalia couldn't sleep. Her stomach was full of good food, and she was in a very comfortable bed, yet something was keeping her awake. Suddenly, and for no apparent reason, Thalia's eyes shot towards the door, and she pulled the Master Sword. Someone was there. The door opened.

"Miss Thalia?"

"Malon. What are you doing still awake?"

"Ingo says that, since you are paying so much, I must stay up and cater to your needs."

Thalia looked away with a sarcastic smirk. Malon smiled sadly.

"You don't have the money, do you?"

"Nope. I was going to wait until you got up and had the horses ready for the day. Then we would sneak out with them. Obviously, 'Master Ingo' will not be up that early, since he doesn't actually do much around here, does he? This really turns things around."

"No it doesn't."

Thalia looked at Malon in surprise.

"Ingo is asleep. I'll fix up the horses you want, right now. Then we can leave, and you don't have to pay for anything..."

"... Yes?"

"There is one more thing that I ask. Please, take me with you."

Thalia's expression remained the same.

"Gannon kicked my father out of the ranch and pays Ingo to raise horses for him. I'm a slave, and I want to find my father again. I know that he's in Kakariko Village. I heard you and Sheik talking last night. I know you will pass through there on the way to Death Mountain. I promise that I won't be any trouble, just, please, take me away from here!"

"Of course we will."

"Sheik! How long have you been awake?"

"Long enough. We leave, now."

(((((TBC)))))

I though that I would leave just a bit of a cliff-hanger right there. To find out what happens next, you will just have to be patient. But here is a small preview.

Next chapter: Sheik and Thalia make their way to the Goron City, only to find it empty. They meet Darunia's son, Link, and his namesake, Link, where they find out that the original Link may still be somewhere in there...

Once again, please remember that I try to base the dungeons off of the Zelda no Densetsu manga, which means they will be slightly simpler. Thnk you.


	6. Escaping the Ranch

Well, here it is. Chapter six. Wow. This now my longest story on FanFiction. I have a longer one on FictionPress, but this is just... wow. A great achievement for me.

(Walks onto a stage)

I would like to give out my thanks to God, first of all. Oh, this is so unexpected. Second, I must give so much thanks to Writer's Block, for leaving me alone during this time. I would love to thank my friends for introducing me to FanFiction. And last, but not least, I would like to give out a great thank you to spell check. Without it, I would never be able to write my stories.

I do have to finish this later though, as right now, I have a job interview. Be back later.

(leaves)

(returns)

I know that you have no sense of my time, as you are only reading this, but I was gone for an hour. And I returned... WITH CANDY! Of course, it's melted because it's a freaking 97 degrees outside. Those poor Reese's cookies. They never had a chance... mmm, cookies. Hey! The wrapper said four cookies, but I got three! Stupid false advertising.

Anywho, enough of my rant, and onto the story.

Chapter 6!

(((((Lon Lon Ranch)))))

"_Gannon kicked my father out of the ranch and pays Ingo to raise horses for him. I'm a slave, and I want to find my father again. I know that he's in Kakariko Village. I heard you and Sheik talking last night. I know you will pass through there on the way to Death Mountain. I promise that I won't be any trouble, just, please, take me away from here!"_

"_Of course we will."_

"_Sheik! How long have you been awake?"_

"_Long enough. We leave, now."_

(((((Outside)))))

"Which horses do you two want?"

Sheik walked over to the horse that was a darker brown than the rest and nodded. Malon went over to help get Sheik's horse ready. Thalia looked around in disappointment.

"Where's my horsie?"

"The one from earlier? Her name is Epona, and she should be outside. Be careful though. She doesn't always trust... people?"

Malon looked over to find Thalia already gone and outside. She looked at Sheik. He shrugged and she laughed.

Malon finished up with Sheik's horse and he loaded his supplies on to the horse. He led the horse outside after Malon. She was standing and staring.

"What's going on?"

"Shhh. Listen."

Sheik quieted and listened. He heard... humming? He looked out to see Thalia and Epona. Thalia was humming a quiet tune, which happened to be the Song of Storms, and Epona was swaying slightly with the music.

"Wow. I've never seen anyone warm up to Epona that much."

"Which is too bad. Because she's not going to be around that horse for much longer!"

Malon gasped as Ingo pushed his way past her and pulled a crossbow, aiming for Sheik and Thalia.

"You'll either pay, or you won't leave alive."

Thalia frowned. She took Epona by the reins. Ingo aimed for her. Thalia brought one foot up to a stirrup. Ingo readied himself to fire. Thalia leapt upon the horse and turned her around. Ingo shot an arrow. Thalia pulled the Master Sword and swung, slicing the arrow in half. Sheik got her attention and yelled.

"Run!"

Thalia nodded. Epona galloped toward the entrance after Sheik. Sheik's horse, named Hayyel, ran through the entrance just as Ingo closed the gate.

"I don't care if you leave. But her horse is being specially held for Gannon- HEY! Don't take her."

Thalia had sidled up to Malon and pulled her up behind herself on the saddle.

"Hold on."

Malon nodded and swallowed in nervousness. Thalia glared at Ingo, and then smiled, viciously. Thalia yelled Epona into a run towards the gate. Ingo aimed for them with the crossbow that he still held tightly. Thalia brought Epona into a gallop, and just as they were about to reach the gate-!

Epona turned.

Ingo fell back in surprise, arrow firing into the air. Epona ran full speed at the wall surrounding the ranch, and leapt over it gracefully. She landed with all passengers still on, and trotted toward the front of the farm to meet up with Hayyel. Sheik and Thalia nodded at each other before heading toward Kakariko Village.

(((((Back Inside the Ranch)))))

Ingo flew back into the wall of the house, sending the Cuccos flying in all directions.

"Please, sir, have mercy! I tried to stop them, but-!"

Ingo was kicked again. He looked up with horror at the person who was beating him.

Link.

"There are no excuses. Not only did you lose my horse, you have helped enemies of the great Lord Ganondorf. You're lucky though. I don't have time for you right now. So instead, I'll be back to kill you later."

Link started to walk away. Ingo sighed as he sunk to the ground in slight gratitude.

"Oh."

Ingo flinched.

"And if you're not here when I come back, I won't just kill you. I will turn you inside out and feed you to the Moblins. And by the way. They like their meat still alive and able to feel the pain."

(((((Back with our heroes)))))

Thalia looked around at the peaceful town.

"Finally. A place that hasn't been destroyed by Gannon."

"And the place where I will find my dad."

"We must still be careful. Just because Ganondorf isn't here, doesn't mean his spies aren't."

The three looked around cautiously... nothing.

"Yeah, dangerous place. The worst part is that old woman in that corner over there who's screaming something about rabbits being the end of the world."

Malon giggled and Sheik rolled his eyes.

"If you're not going to work, then get OUT of this house!"

The group looked to a house near the centre of the town. The door of the house flew open and a short, rounding man was tossed out by a rather large woman.

"And I don't want to see your face around here again, you bum!"

She turned back into her house and slammed the door. The round man sat up and rubbed his head, mumbling. Malon gasped.

"Papa?"

The man looked up at the voice.

"Malon? Malon, is that you?"

"Papa!"

Malon jumped off of Epona from behind Thalia and ran to the man, who Thalia was now able to identify as Talon. He had visited the temple frequently, looking for a quiet place to nap. Thalia never minded letting him sleep on her sofa, as long as he was out by the time she closed the temple.

Sheik looked over at Thalia. Her eyes were wide and a small smile graced her face, pleased at the reunion of the family. Sheik started for the family at a slow pace. Thalia followed him. Malon looked up at them.

"Thank you so much for this."

Thalia smiled brightly at her. Sheik expected her to say something, but she didn't. Thalia simply turned her horse, and rode toward a small shop to restock some of her equipment.

(((((Later)))))

Sheik and Thalia stood outside of the store.

"Well, we've gotten about all of the we need. Anything else?"

Sheik thought.

"I do think that there is something else we can get. I'm not entirely sure, but I believe we can find it in the graveyard."

"A graveyard! Fun!"

(((((Kakariko Graveyard)))))

"Not fun, not fun!"

Sheik watched with slight amusement as Thalia ran through the graveyard, being chased by about five different poes, all of them cackling away. Whether it was natural, or because Thalia was having a heart attack, but it was quite amusing.

Sheik laughed a little, before going to save Thalia.

(((((TBC)))))

Sorry it took so long, but school is busy, and my laptop was broken for a couple of weeks. But I'm back now, and so is my story!

Preview of next chapter:

Thalia and Sheik meet the ghost of the graveyard, and challenge him for his treasure. They then find their hands full with a young and very upset goron named Link, and a very, very, very pissed off dragon.


	7. The Fire Temple

Wow, I'm just having a good time when it comes to creativity right now. That could be because I have Writer's Block tied to a chair in my closet, but either way, I'm doing good, on both FictionPress and FanFiction. I have one major story on each, and a bunch of little ones going around as well. Go read my stories and poetry on FP if you find the time. You might some to be to your liking, and I could always use the reviews hinthint, winkwink, nudgenudge Get the picture?

Anywho, onto the next chapter.

(((((The Graveyard)))))

"_Not fun, not fun!"_

_Sheik watched with slight amusement as Thalia ran through the graveyard, being chased by about five different Poes, all of them cackling away. Whether it was natural, or because Thalia was having a heart attack, the Poes found it was quite amusing._

_Sheik laughed a little, before going to save Thalia._

(((((Later)))))

Thalia had easily been saved by Sheik. As it turns out, Thalia loved graveyards, hated the ghosts. And zombies. And would have hated the redeads, if they weren't so stupid. She didn't like to be scared, but she loved old things. People, buildings, graveyards, anything that was old had a story behind it. The older the better.

Sheik had learned many things from Thalia. Some of them confused him, others frightened him (and more in the "what the hell?" way, instead of the actually scared way). But there were things he learned from her he knew that he would never forget.

After the Poe problem, Thalia and Sheik had made for Dante, the grave keeper's house. It was empty, but as they left, they ran into another ghost. It was Dante himself, and it had sent Thalia into another wave of shock. By the time she had become conscious again, Sheik had explained their plight to Dante, wondering if he had anything to help them. They had heard that when Dante was still running the graveyard, he had dug up all sorts of odd things that had been littering the graves and paths. Dante had handed them a short hookshot. It wasn't that great, but Thalia thanked him profoundly for it. As she and Sheik began to leave, she bowed and said a small prayer for Dante's soul. It was a small gesture, but Sheik could have sworn he saw a ghostly tear come to the grave keeper's eye.

Sheik realized something else in that moment. While Thalia wasn't always all that content with that job she had, she had such an effect on the people around. Sheik didn't think that she would have given up her job for the world.

(((((On the Path to Goron City)))))

Sheik learned another thing about Thalia here. In the Kokiri Village, she had learned she didn't like spiders. In the graveyard, it was ghosts. Now, on the path up the mountain, Sheik discovered that Thalia did not care much for insects. Especially such a large breed as the Tektites.

"EEEEEE!"

Thalia screamed loudly as the bugs jumped toward her, easily being cut down by her flailing sword.

And flailing was right. Sheik would have helped her, but he probably would have been hit by the Master Sword, along with the bugs. That, and there were only two bugs, so her swinging the sword around was doing a pretty good job of killing them anyway.

As the last one fell to the ground, dead, Thalia then took the sword, and decided that the bug was not dead enough for her liking. She began to hack at it miserably, still slightly screaming her head off. Sheik rolled his eyes and walked up the hill, grabbing Thalia's collar as he went. She was still stabbing the poor mutilated creature, but stopped when she realized that she couldn't reach it anymore.

Sheik just hoped that that was the last of the Tektites along this path.

(((((Goron City)))))

"Wow, this place is humongous!"

Thalia stared wide-eyed at the vastness of the city of the Gorons.

It was a vast rocky area, all natural walls, some ropes spaced throughout the hollow centre of the large room, and fences placed on some of the higher levels for safety.

Thalia began to run around the top level, trying to see everything. She was so engrossed in her searching, that she completely forgot that she was on the top level, and while stepping forward to get a better look at the ceiling, she fell.

There was some silence, and Sheik jumped to the next level down, right next to Thalia.

"Are you alive?"

"... ow..."

"I will take that as a yes."

As Sheik finished that sentence and began to help Thalia up, a low rumbling could be heard down the way of the third level path. As they stared, they saw a rock rolling towards them at an incredibly high speed.

No, not a rock... a Goron.

At the last moment, Sheik leapt from path of the rolling Goron, expecting Thalia to do the same.

She didn't.

A small cracking sound from Thalia's backside sounded, as well as a helpless gurgling sound from her throat. Sheik winced at her pain, as the Goron ran over her. It continued to roll. Sheik followed it with his eyes, as Thalia made some pained noises getting up.

"I am amazed that you survived that."

"I am amazed that I haven't killed that thing yet!"

Thalia straightened herself and began to run in the other direction as the Goron. She stopped a little ways down, right across from a shaded insert in the wall. It grew quite a few bomb flowers. Sheik figured out what she was planning and stayed away from her.

The slow rumbling could be heard again, as the Goron made its way back around the level. Thalia pulled an arrow from the quiver on her back, and situated it on the previously drawn bow. Sheik closed his eyes and lightly plugged his ears. Thalia drew back as the Goron rounded the corner. Sheik braced himself.

Suddenly a loud explosion sounded throughout the cavern. A wind from the explosion blew him faintly off centre, but not enough to knock him over. He took his hands from his ears and opened his eyes just as the once rolling Goron skidded to a stop a few meters from him.

Thalia walked over to the Goron (she was lightly covered in dust from the explosion), and stood in front of him. He unfolded himself and looked between her and Sheik, shivering in fear.

"A-a-are you g-going t-t-t-to hurt m-me?"

The poor thing was shivering so badly he could barely speak correctly. Thalia's face softened considerably. She gave a small, sad smile. The Goron calmed a bit.

"No, we won't hurt you. I was a little peeved that you ran me over, as I was already in quite a bit of pain from my fall, but I think I will survive. What's your name?"

The Goron sniffed, rubbing his rocky tears with large hands.

"I'm sorry that I ran you over. My name is Link!"

Thalia's eyes widened as he said this. The Goron Link continued.

"My daddy, Darunia, named me after a great hero, who saved the whole Goron tribe! He was able to slay the lizard that was keeping us from our eating rocks."

He continued on about how Link would come and save them from the dragon that had captured the Gorons and his daddy. A great hero.

"Not anymore..."

Goron Link paused.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing! Just thinking. What do you say we go save your father?"

Goron Link cheered as he told them how to get to where the dragon was, in the volcano.

(((((In the Heart of the Volcano)))))

It hadn't taken them long to get where they were. The whole volcano had been filled to the brim with traps set by Gannon, which they easily bypassed thanks to Thalia's newfound obsession with her hookshot. The item was like an unbreakable toy to her. And she used it even where she didn't need it, bypassing about every single trap, wall, and rock on the path.

Sheik sighed, for the thousandth time since they entered the temple, as Thalia aimed the hookshot carefully toward the ceiling. She rocketed herself up high landing a mere few meters from her starting point, skipping an entire room of solid ground (there was no lava or traps), only to land in front of the door.

Sheik and Goron Link slowly walked over to the door in the exact same time it took Thalia to hookshot her way over.

"Was that necessary?"

"It was... for a HERO!"

She took a cheesy stance and smiled in an almost blinding way. Goron Link looked at Sheik, who rolled his eyes.

Thalia came down from her high and opened the door. She started to ask a question about how much longer they were going to be stuck down in this cave, but was never able to finish as the floor caved beneath them...

(((((Volvagia's Cavern)))))

Thalia had woken up with a whopping headache and sweating badly.

They had landed in a large cave, filled, to the brim of the platform that they landed on, with lava.

Of course, that was a few minutes ago.

After all three of them had awoken, a loud rumbling had shaken the platform, and the dragon Volvagia had risen from the fire.

Thalia had actually tried to reason with the dragon, but she failed. In the end, she aimed for Volvagia with the hookshot, catching the dragon in an eye. This caused the dragon to pause, flailing about for a moment, adjusting to the newfound blindness in its left eye. Thalia used the moment to ready an arrow, aiming for the other eye. The dragon, now totally blind, crashed into the lava. It poked its head out slightly from one of the holes, and Thalia tried to slash at it with the Master Sword. The sword could not cut the dragon's tough facial hide.

Now that it knew where Thalia was, it emerged from the hole, wandering about the platform after Thalia. She was almost cornered, when the dragon reared up in pain. Thalia was able to run back over to her friends.

"Use this!"

Thalia caught something heavy that was tossed at her by the small Goron. It was a hammer. A large hammer. Sheik looked at it.

"A hammer?"

Thalia gave an evil smile.

"Smash."

The dragon heard them, and turned toward them. It began to charge, but before it could move in to attack, Thalia leapt forward and ran the hammer right into the dragon's nose. It reared back and cried out in extreme pain. As it tried to recover, Thalia drew the Master Sword. She leapt upward to attack, and brought the sword down behind the dragon's head, on the soft unprotected skin of its neck.

The head flew clean off. It was over.

Sheik let out a sigh of relief, and Goron Link cheered for her. Thalia was silent. As Volvagia let out its last dying breaths, its glowing red eyes cleared, revealing startling blue ones.

It cooed a small whimper, and Thalia touched its face. She said a small prayer for it, and almost as if it understood, its eyes clouded up with tears.

"I'm sorry, friend."

She whispered to it as it closed its eyes and the heat melted it away into ashes...

(((((Goron City)))))

Goron's cheered and jubilant music played. King Darunia thanked Thalia and Sheik. A feast was prepared for them. Sheik "wasn't hungry," and Thalia made the mistake of being polite and trying the rock sirloin. She decided that Goron Link needed the food more, as he had had a long day. They drank water for the rest of their time their.

It was then that Darunia motioned the two of them into his room. He grabbed the Goron statue that was in the back of his room and pulled, moving it away from an empty spot in the wall.

"Follow me friends."

Sheik and Thalia followed Darunia into the cave. It came out in the volcano on the other side. Darunia led them back into the temple, into the entrance area. The bats had cleared out. Darunia went and stood in front of the statues.

"This is the true altar of the Fire Temple. It is here that the goddesses hid their power."

Suddenly, the world seemed to fall away from them! As it came back into place, a calm light flooded over them. The Sacred Realm again.

Thalia looked at the symbol of the forest sage, pulsing with a green light. 'Saria.' Thalia half-smiled and turned toward the newly glowing symbol.

"Priestess. I, Darunia, am the Sage of Fire."

Thalia nodded in recognition, little surprise echoing in her face. Darunia continued.

"Priestess, I know of what has happened to the hero Link. I have but one wish for you."

Thalia nodded again.

"Link is my sworn brother. I know that he does not mean the evil that he causes. Please... save him."

(((((Fire Temple)))))

Link stood over the ashes of Volvagia. His eyes seemed to mist over, ever so slightly. In an instant it was gone, though.

Link turned and walked away, disappearing in a flash of light, back to Gannon.

(((((TBC)))))

This might be my only chapter for a little while, because I really need to work on my original fiction on FictionPress. Again, go check it out. Same pen name. Title is Realms of Darkness.


	8. Filler Chapter

Okay, sorry about the huge delay. For all of my stories. But I just started college, and got a new laptop in the process, so all of my crap is on my other laptop. But I know that there are quite a few of you who like my story, so here is a nice filler for you. Please note:

**THERE WILL NOT BE ANOTHER UPDATE UNTIL OCTOBER!**

This is because fall break is in October, and then I can copy everything else over to this laptop.

Also, I got a new art account on DeviantArt (TheOriginalCelcius) and that will soon have art for many of my stories.

Again, sorry about all of the delays, and here is something to bide your time until then.

(((((Lost Woods)))))

There was no possible force on this or any other planet that could express the depth of Thalia's hatred for the Skull Kids.

"OW! Get back here you friggin' little twerp!"

She squealed again as another Skull Kid spit a rock at her. Sheik stood off to the side, watching her run back and forth as she was taunted by the lost children. She paused in front of him, gasping for breath.

"... damn... kids..."

Sheik snorted lightly.

"If you didn't let them bother you, they would leave you alone."

"Easy for you to say! You're not the one being attacked!"

Her eyes widened as a Skull Kid dropped on her back and reached over her shoulder.

"Ooh, shiny."

He reached over and grabbed the Triforce necklace around her neck, then ran deeper into the forest.

"H-hey! Give that back!"

Thalia followed him. Sheik sighed, then pushed himself upright to follow her. He peered into the trees where he thought she went. No sign of Thalia. He looked around to different areas of the forest. No sign of Thalia. He sighed again.

"This... is not good."

(((((o)))))

"Get back here you little brat! That's mine! I need it!"

She stopped, falling to her knees.

"I need it."

Thalia thought back to when she first received it.

(((((15 years ago)))))

Thalia finished putting the last of the dishes into the tub, soaking them in the soapy water. Her mother handed her a broom to sweep out from under the table. As she finished that task there was a knock at the door. Her older brother, who was helping to bathe their younger sister, paused to open the door. There were castle guards. They held up a necklace with a Triforce symbol on it. They went up to Thalia and her mother, handing her mother the necklace. Her mother called for their father. He walked into the room, freezing as he saw the guards. His eyes fell, her mother's eyes starting to fill with tears. She took the necklace, slipping it over Thalia's head. Her tears now flowed freely. Thalia looked around blankly, blinking in confusion. Her brother looked away, going to finish the youngest girl's bath. Her sister looked at her for an answer, but Thalia had none. Her father left, and she heard him punch the wall, and she heard him begin to sob. Her mother hugged her tightly, handing her to her brother. She then joined her father. Her brother took her sister from the tub, and the three clung to each other. Eyes red, her father returned to the room. He picked her up, hugging her so she thought she would break. He then set her down, and gave her hand to a guard's.

The guards then led Thalia from her house, which she never saw again.

As the they arrived at the temple she saw the King and the Queen, holding their young daughter. At the front of the temple, in front of the altar, she saw a table, holding her grandmother's body.

She wrapped her hand around the Triforce pendant, leaving an imprint on her hand.

The only remnant of the previous priestess of time.

(((((o)))))

Thalia only realized she was crying when she felt a hand on her shoulder, and she lifted her head to face the Skull Kid. He held her necklace in front of her face.

"I'm sorry."

She rubbed at her eyes, shaking her head. Pulling on the persona of the Priestess of Time again, she looked at the young lost child. She smiled.

"It's alright. May I have it back?"

The child nodded, handing the necklace back to her. He started to walk away.

"Wait!"

He stopped and looked back at the woman.

"Wait here, for just a little while."

Taking the Master Sword, she cut off a little piece of wood from a tree. Carving at it the best that she could, it slowly was shaped into a wooden Triforce. Taking a piece of string from her pocket, she tied it through the symbol. Thalia handed it to the Skull Kid.

He smiled at her.

"Um, one more thing. Can you help me out of the forest? I'm lost."

(((((o))))

"Did you get it back?"

"You weren't even worried about me, were you!"

Sheik let out another amused snort.

"I never do."

Thalia would have exploded at him, but the way she said it, she could just tell that it was a compliment. And he was right. She could take care of herself and everybody else, too!

"It's easy... for a hero."


End file.
